One out of every four cars sold in India is an off-roader

The love of Indians for SUVs is getting stronger by the day and one out of every four cars sold in the country is now an off-roader.

The lure of off-roaders — with high ground clearance, macho looks and relatively-powerful engines — is so strong that their sales volumes have more than doubled over the last five years, outpacing the growth of other segments in the car market, such as compact cars and mini sedans.

Rapidly changing lifestyles, increased inter-city travel and proliferation of newer, and budget-friendly models have fuelled the surge, say companies. “It is a disruptive segment, and it is only going to grow bigger and stronger,” said Rakesh Srivastava, senior VP (sales & marketing) at Hyundai India. The company has tasted success with Creta that now accounts for sale of nearly 8,000 units on a monthly basis. “The SUV category is attracting buyers even from sedans and MPVs,” he added.

Officials say that a higher stance, and patchy road conditions prompt many to opt for SUVs. “Even the prices of the vehicles have been coming down over the years, and they have entered the mainstream of the car industry. ‘City SUVs’ such as the MarutiBrezza, Ford EcoSport and Renault Duster are high on affordability, and more and more people find them within their reach,” an official with a leading company said, requesting anonymity. “They may not be 4X4s, but have the design and certain key characteristics of the off-roaders which does the trick.”

Maruti’s Brezza, which was launched in March last year, is a case in point. The model has quickly raced on to become one of the fastest-growing cars in the market. It has seen sales of 80,000 units in the nine months of its launch, and boasts of a waiting period, that runs into a few months.

N Raja, director of sales & marketing at Toyota Kirloskar, said that people are “bored” of hatchbacks and mini sedans. “With SUVs, they want to show that they have arrived in life. They feel that their image comes out stronger.” The trend towards off-roaders is not confined to India, in fact, it is a global phenomenon. Off-roaders are proving to be quite a delight across the world, and so is the case here.

The strength of the segment is not confined only to the affordable category, but it is equally strong in the luxury categories as well. Mercedes Benz’s GLE (priced upwards of Rs 50 lakh) and BMW’s X1 (starts around Rs 30 lakh) have seen strong demand in the market too.